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- Former President Donald Trump’s attorney has served three years in prison for tax evasion and lying about hidden money payments.
- He admitted to paying Stormy Daniels for his alleged affair with Trump.
- He released a revealing “Disloyal” memoir about his work as Trump’s attorney.
- He testified before the grand jury in 2023 in the Trump investigation regarding the payment of Stormy Daniels.
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Michael Cohen testified before a grand jury in a criminal investigation into the former president that of Donald Trump alleged payment of silent money to an adult entertainer stormy daniels in 2016, with many speculating that an indictment may soon be forthcoming, per The New York Times. Cohen, 56, was once Trump’s lawyer and fixer, before he was arrested for tax evasion and lying about the silent payment to Daniels, 43, before serving three years in prison, including a brief release home. Cohen recounted his experiences with Trump in his tell-all book Disloyal: a memoir, which he released in 2020.
Cohen’s memoir shared many of the former attorney’s thoughts on Trump and her experiences with him, including recollection of an inappropriate comment Trump allegedly made about Cohen’s then 15-year-old daughter. “I would have liked to hit him on the side of the head,” he said of the comment.
Cohen’s testimony is seen as a key part of the investigation into Trump, 76, and many are waiting to hear whether prosecutors intend to indict the former president on the charges, which considered paying Daniels as an inappropriate campaign donation. Learn more about Cohen and his past charges here.
1. Michael Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison in December 2018
He pleaded guilty to tax evasion and lying to Congress about paying ‘silent money’ to silence Stormy Daniels and her playmate Playboy Karen McDougal over claims that they had affairs with Donald Trump. “Each of these crimes is a serious offense against the United States,” the judge told him. “Mr. Cohen pleaded guilty to a true assortment of fraudulent conduct.
He began sentencing on March 6, 2019. Prior to sentencing, Michael assumed “full responsibility” for the crimes, “for every act to which I have pleaded guilty… personal acts toward me and those involving the President of the States -United of America”. America. My own weakness was a blind loyalty to man that caused me to choose the path of darkness. Time and again, I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds.
Cohen was released early from prison due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020, per Reuters. Despite the early release, he briefly returned to prison, but he was released again in July 2020, allowed to serve the remainder of his sentence at home and claiming he had accepted a job on a committee of political action.
2. He admitted to paying Stormy Daniels
When Daniels first shared her story about her alleged affair with Trump in 2006, Cohen immediately jumped to her client’s defense. Yes, Daniels received $130,000 to keep the matter quiet, but Cohen claims it came out of his own pocket. It is the moment of payment that triggers red flags. It wasn’t in 2006, when the alleged affair happened, or in 2011, when Way of life printed their story on the scandal. It was 11 days before the 2016 presidential election.
In a Feb. 13 statement, Cohen said that despite the win, he doesn’t actually believe Daniels and Trump had an affair. “Just because something isn’t true doesn’t mean it can’t cause you harm or harm,” he said. “I will always protect Mr. Trump.” The payoff could be a possible violation of federal campaign law, which is what the ongoing criminal investigation is investigating.
Cohen’s personal attorney, David Schwartzclaimed his innocence to CBS News“Mr. Cohen paid the $130,000, but the reason is to protect the business, protect the reputation and protect the family,” Schwartz said. Former federal prosecutor Kim Wehle told the outlet, however, that “Mr. Cohen finds himself in deeper legal trouble that could leave him more vulnerable in the Mueller investigation. I don’t think that necessarily benefits others who are potentially the subject of this investigation, including the President of the United States himself. »
3. Daniels sued him for defamation
Daniels amended her lawsuit against Trump on March 26, 2018, claiming Cohen defamed her when he suggested she lied about her alleged affair with the current president. The complaint argues that although Cohen did not directly accuse Daniels of lying about the alleged affair, he defamed her by implicating her.
Daniels claims in the lawsuit filed by his former attorney, Michel Avenatti, that “it was reasonably understood that Mr. Cohen meant that Ms. Clifford, alias Stormy Daniels, is a liar; someone not to be trusted. Mr. Cohen made the statement knowing that it was false or had serious doubts about the veracity of the statements.
4. He has a history of alleged threats
Cohen has publicly threatened reporters. “I will make sure that you and I meet one day while we are at the courthouse. And I’ll take you for every penny you don’t have yet,” he said to a daily beast journalist who once called him for a story. “So I’m warning you, step very f**king lightly, because what I’m about to do to you is going to be f**king disgusting. You understand me? You write a story that contains the name of Mr. Trump, with the word “rape”, and I will ruin your life… as long as you are on this fucking planet.
“You’re going to have judgments against you, so much money, you’ll never know how to get out of it,” he added. He also retweeted threats to Megyn Kelly. After grilling Trump on his treatment of women during that infamous 2015 GOP debate, he called Megyn a liar and retweeted people who said “Let’s scoop her out,” and called her a “snake” and of “psychopath”.
5. He was seen having dinner with Kanye West
Since his release from prison, Cohen has been spotted having lunch with a high profile figure: Kanye West. While details of their dating were scarce, Cohen and the rapper were seen together in New York twice in October 2021.
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